Moral Dimensions of Grading in High School English

Abstract

Moral issues are deeply embedded in the grading practices of high school English teachers. The problem of giving the right grade for each pupil is central to the study's examination of grading practices of the English department in an upstate New York high school. Arriving at a fair grade, weighing in both achievement and non-achievement factors such as effort and attitude in determining grades, and the role of teachers' expectations in terms of perceived student ability and progress are examined using a theoretical framework derived chiefly from Jackson, Boostrom, and Hansen's The Moral LIfe of Schools (1993). The framework considers the grading process in terms of truth, worthwhileness, trust, and intellectual and moral attentiveness.

A series of semi-structured interviews conducted over the course of an entire school year provide the data for examining the teachers' grading practices and perspectives.

Results indicate that English teachers struggle with issues of fairness, but are confident that their grades communicate the messages they hope to send. Grading strategies are adjusted depending on purpose, and are sometimes altered due to school district grade reporting procedures. Early in the school year, grading is used to help establish expectations. Later in the year, grading is based on the expectations developed from both earlier student performance and personal interaction with students. Grades are subtly influenced by issues of effort, attitude, and conduct, and thus may unconsciously reflect judgments made by the teachers on the moral character of their students. While the teachers acknowledge English class as a proper forum for the exploration of moral issues and the development of character, they hesitate to make direct judgments about the moral development of their students, even as they attempt to influence it.